


Affection

by followmetoyourdoom



Category: BNA: Brand New Animal (Anime)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Oneshot, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:48:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25031965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/followmetoyourdoom/pseuds/followmetoyourdoom
Summary: Some say three time's the charm, but can a little affection really get through to a thousand year old immortal?
Relationships: Kagemori Michiru/Ogami Shirou
Comments: 20
Kudos: 610





	Affection

**Author's Note:**

> Oh hey lookit this I'm back to writing fanfiction! These anime wolf boys man, they just, get me. Also you can take this shippy or not, I wrote it with the former in mind but hopefully it's neutral enough that it could be taken anyway.

Just because Alan's tyranny was over didn't mean the streets of animacity were clean now, far from it in fact. There were still plenty of crimes to be solved, and plenty of trouble for Michiru to get into.

Shirou had long ago stopped telling her to stay safe. So he focused on keeping her safe on their various missions, even if it meant getting hurt himself.

"So how long does an arm take to grow back?" she commented, trying not to stare.

"A couple of days. I'll be fine." he deadpanned. He'd had it worse after all.

She nodded. "So… Tiny baby arm huh?"

Shirou half growled in annoyance. "That's just part of the healing process," he muttered, noticing Michiru approaching out of the corner of his eye. "Don't touch it." This is why he preferred to be left alone after a fight like this.

But, to his surprise, Michiru dropped the subject pretty quickly. 

"Okay…" There was a pause. "Thank you, for saving me, again," she said quietly. She'd been living here for just over a year now and seen her fair share of danger. But seeing Shirou hurt to such extremes, even if she knew he could heal, it still terrified her. And it reflected in her tone of voice.

Shirou tilted his head at her, sitting up a little from the sofa. "I'm fine. Really. I protect the beastmen, remember. It's my duty."

"That doesn't mean others can't care and worry about you."

He paused and looked at her. She... cared about him? Hrmp. Still, that was no reason to go all soft. She didn't need to worry about him, he- wait what was she...

"Are you scratching me behind the ears?"

"Should I stop?" Michiru teased a little, having already felt how he had nuzzled his head into the touch before realising.

Shirou squinted. "...I didn't say that."

She giggled a little and continued scratching him, trying not to laugh more when he morphed into his wolf form.

"Don't you dare tell anyone about this," he half growled. He settled down, closing his eyes as he started to feel the drowsiness take over. It always did when there was such a large part of his body to heal.

"I won't," she said warmly, just happy she could help him relax.

* * *

Shirou was always reluctant to see Michiru in the sky, especially so far away from him. He couldn't keep her safe there, couldn't find her if anything happened. But she reassured him multiple times it wouldn't. And then, of course, something did.

Seeing her fall unconscious from the sky had felt like his heart had been torn from his chest once more.

What kind of a silver wolf was he if he couldn't even protect the person he cared about the most? The realisation - the truth of his feelings - stunned him for a moment before he shook it off. It was the guilt of course it was. After all, he cared about all beastmen equally. Besides, he had to focus on finding her, on trying to figure out by sight where she had fallen.

He skidded to a halt in front of a pile of rubble. "...Michiru?!?!?" he furiously began tearing apart the broken bricks and pavement with his claws, trying to find her.

She had to be okay, she  _ had _ to be. He could never forgive himself if anything happened to her-

"Shirou... why are you crying?"

He spun around, seeing her hobble out of an alley. "MICHIRU!" He didn't think, he just ran for her, almost tripping up, and swept her into a hug, holding her against his chest and lifting her off the ground.

She winced. "Ow, ow, careful."

Shirou quickly pulled back so he wasn't squeezing her as tightly, but kept her in his arms. "Are you okay, what happened, how did you-?"

"My tail…" she explained, then continued when Shirou still looked confused. "I crashed into the ground there in my tail, but I still bounced pretty high into the alley and... and my leg really hurts."

He glanced at it, noticing the blood. "Then let's get you home," he shifted his hold on her so he was carrying her princess style, very carefully making sure no more harm came to her. Harm that already shouldn't have come to her. He should have been there, should have caught her or softened the fall for her, anything.

"Shirou?" she looked up at him and wiped his cheek. "You're still crying... why?"

"Because you got hurt when I should have protected you," he growled, angry at himself, wolf form coming back out again at his emotions.

"You're protecting me now," she pointed out, still stroking his cheek. "Really, Shirou, I'm okay."

He stared down at her and sighed. "You will be," he promised.

* * *

The noise of his footsteps woke her and she tiptoed to the open window to look out. "Shirou... what are you doing up here?"

He glanced towards her then back off at the city. "I couldn't sleep."

The lines under his eyes were more profound than usual, and, even though his hands were stuffed into the pockets of his jeans, she could still tell they were shaking. She thought for a moment, then jumped out onto the roof with him.

"...!" Shirou felt her hug him from behind. Warm arms grounding him and tearing him away from the nightmares that had woken him.

This was... strange. But not entirely bad.

He turned around in her arms, looking at her with that piercing unblinking gaze before he returned the hug and rested his chin on her head. She was always so... comforting lately, as if just by touching her, he felt calmer.

"You wanna talk about it?" she asked, surprised he had returned the hug, but very glad he had.

"No."

"Okay."

And so they stayed like that, the tension easing from Shirou's body as he leant further into the hug. He'd needed this. He felt his emotions strongly, even if he didn't express them. But, as Michiru had said, people were allowed to care, and he could no longer hide the fact that he cared about her.

He nuzzled her hair without even realising what he was doing, his instincts expressing what he felt even if he couldn't bring himself to do so.

Michiru blushed at the affection, but very carefully didn't point it out in case he stopped.

Eventually, Shirou cleared his throat and let go. "Thank you... I might be able to sleep now." He glanced away awkwardly, trying to keep the blush off his face. It was extremely obvious despite his best efforts.

"Okay," she smiled and squeezed his arm. "You know where to find me if you need me."

If... he needed her... He watched as she headed back inside and waved at him. He smiled softly. Yeah, maybe he did need her sometimes. And not just when they were fighting crime and getting into trouble together. Sometimes… he just needed someone to give him a little affection.

Kuro chirped at him and Shirou huffed, instantly defaulting to his usual grumpy state. "Don't give me that look." He headed back inside, hoping for a more peaceful slumber.

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked this, be sure to check out my other fics, and [my twitter](https://twitter.com/DapperAndDoomed) for ways you can support my work!


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